Nightshade
by accioswiftgames
Summary: AU: Jack visits 16-year-old Elsa to cheer her up, but he ends up sticking around. One night, she almost hurts Jack using her powers and she tries to run away to save them all. (Jelsa one-shot)


**A/N: Hello! So this is a new fandom/ship that I'm writing for, and I haven't read any of the other Jelsa fanfics so I'm not sure this is how they are usually characterized. **

**So this is a birthday present for one of my closest friends, Shafa! I hope you like it. Happy birthday!**

**Anyways, enjoy this one-shot guys!**

* * *

Elsa looked down at her bare hands and winced.

They looked perfectly fine. Smooth, pale skin. Manicured nails. Long, thin fingers. Clean without a stain, without a scratch. Many would even consider them beautiful.

That just made Elsa loathe them more.

No one else would see exactly how much pain and suffering they had caused. They were like nightshade; deceivingly beautiful. They deceived people into thinking she was normal, that she was fit to be queen.

But Elsa knew she would make the kingdom crumble, as easily as packed dirt would crumble when a piece was shoveled out. She had to get away before she turned 21. Before she was crowned queen.

There was a loud bang. Elsa snapped out of her reverie and whipped her head around.

More banging. Muffled cries.

"Elsa, please! I can help you!"

She curled her body over her hands, trying to protect everyone else from it.

The banging was persistent. So were the pleading cries.

"Please, Elsa. Just come out, and it'll all be okay," the voice reasoned.

She wouldn't cry. It wasn't her place to cry. She straightened up and walked towards the door slowly. She got there, and the door was still shaking. She pressed a hand to it.

A clear sheet of ice spread from underneath her hand, covering the door.

Complete silence.

"Elsa?" the same voice asked, no longer yelling.

"Jack," she whispered, pressing her forehead to the iced door.

"Please Elsa, just let me in. I can help you."

She shook her head and closed her eyes before the tears spilled out. "No. No, you can't. You tried, Jack. You tried, and I almost hurt you," she said, her voice breaking.

Elsa turned her back on the door and slid down. She didn't feel the biting cold of the ice. She never did. But at that point, she wished she felt something, _anything_.

She clenched her hand into tight fists, her nails digging into her skin. She welcomed the stinging sensation. It made her forget about the real pain.

"Don't go anywhere, Elsa. Please."

"I can't stay, Jack." She drew in a ragged breath. "I almost killed my sister when I was little. I've basically created an eternal winter in my room. I almost hurt you today. What next? I don't want to push my luck."

"I'll teach you how to control your powers, I'll... I'll find other methods of teaching. It'll work out-"

"At what price, Jack?" she demanded, her voice rising as she twisted her torso around and banged on the door in frustration. Elsa let out a dry sob. "I'm tired of trying to control my powers. I know I can't. I'd be better off just letting go."

Jack didn't say anything to that. A comfortable silence ensued. She usually hated silence because her mind would wander, and she would end up thinking about all the damage she had caused. But this was different. She knew Jack was on the other side of the door, and she wasn't alone. Jack was there, and he always would be.

_Well_, she thought painfully, _not for much longer_.

"I've got it!" his muffled voice suddenly exclaimed enthusiastically.

Elsa couldn't help a small smile. "Got what?"

"I know why all my lessons have been failing. You just told me why."

"What-"

"You need to let go," Jack said, cutting her off.

"I honestly don't see how that would help. I'm supposed to be _controlling_ my power, not releasing it."

"Trust me. Just let me in. Or come out here. Whichever suits you."

Elsa groaned. "Stop, Jack. I don't want to hurt you. Or anyone, for that matter."

"You can't stay in your room for the rest of eternity! Besides, I've survived this long, haven't I? You've never actually hurt me yet in all the years that I've known you."

Elsa thought of that, and her mind wandered to their first encounter.

* * *

She was 16. She was locked up in her room -as usual- while the Christmas festivities went on.

Elsa sat cross-legged on her bed. Her gloves were on, preventing the book in her hand from freezing.

There was a rhythmic knock on the door.

"Elsa? It's snowing outside. I was wondering... do you wanna build a snowman?"

Always the same question. Elsa looked out her window. Specks of silver were floating down slowly, gracefully. Her windowsill was covered in white snow.

"Okay," Anna's voice finally came again, sounding defeated. Elsa put her book down and walked to the door. _I'm sorry_, she thought, touching her head to the door.

"I'm just gonna go now," Anna said hesitantly. "I brought you some hot chocolate though, in case you're cold… or something."

Elsa listened to her receding footsteps until there was complete silence. She pulled the door open a crack and peeked out. There was a steaming mug of brown liquid in front of her door. Seeing no one else, she pulled it open further and bent down to take the mug, before quickly shutting the door again.

She inhaled the sweet scent and smiled. _Chocolate_. Anna even put in marshmallows.

Elsa raised the cup to her lips.

"Hey, are you gonna give me some?"

Elsa jumped in fright, causing some of the hot chocolate to spill. It sizzled on the cold floor. She took deep breaths, trying to calm herself.

There was someone in her room. And judging from the voice, it was a man. Her heart was pounding in her ears. Elsa slowly put the mug down. She wasn't about to waste a perfectly good drink.

If there were ever a time for her powers to hurt someone, this would probably be it.

Elsa closed her eyes, steeling herself. She whirled around, thrusting her arms out. Spikes of ice rose from the ground, forming a barrier between her and the intruder.

He jumped back, narrowly avoiding being impaled. Before he could react further, Elsa pushed her arms forward again, shooting thick streams of snow towards him.

He waved a stick and a sheet of ice appeared before him, stopping the snow in its tracks. The sheet of ice crashed to the ground, breaking off into shards. His hands were raised in surrender.

Did he just-?

"Wait, you have ice powers too?" Elsa asked warily.

He still had his hands up defensively. "Yes, so will you please stop attacking me?"

Elsa didn't lower her hands. "But what are you doing _in my room_?"

He shrugged. "You're sad. I make people happy. So I came."

Elsa looked at him incredulously. This whole thing just seemed like some weird dream. She studied him closer.

He was wearing a blue hoodie and ragged brown pants. His feet were oddly bare. On his head was a shock of white hair. It was messy, sticking up everywhere. His bright blue eyes were luminous in her dark room. The weirdest thing was the stick her had used. It looked like it was fashioned from a tree branch. It was long with an arc on one end.

"Please," he pleaded, "I promise I won't hurt you." His eyes had grown softer, no longer playful.

Elsa slowly lowered her hands. He dropped his hands down and grinned, his eyes once again dancing with mischief. "I'm Jack," he said. "Jack Frost."

"I'm Elsa."

"Nice to meet you, Elsa." He walked around the spiky ice barrier towards her.

Elsa took a step back, unwittingly knocking down her mug of hot chocolate. She jumped away from the pooling liquid.

She groaned and turned to him. "Great. I just wasted a perfectly good cup of hot chocolate."

"Sorry," he said, not looking apologetic at all. "So, _Elsa_." He wiggled his eyebrows. "How can I help?"

"Are you _flirting_ with me?!" This guy was an enigma to her, but with every growing second she just felt more comfortable with him.

"Maybe," he replied.

Elsa smacked his arm. "Unbelievable," she muttered, but she felt a small smile spreading on her face.

* * *

Jack had never failed to make her smile, and she was now smiling just from thinking about a memory of him.

"Elsa? You still there?"

"Yeah," she breathed out, knowing that Jack had an amazing sense of hearing.

"Good," Jack replied through the door.

She heard more footsteps outside the door. Muffled voices.

"Elsa?" a new voice enquired.

"Hey, Anna," replied Elsa loudly.

"Are you... okay?"

Elsa laughed bitterly. "_Okay_? Have I ever been okay?" She knew she was being rude, but it was better to drive Anna away.

Of course, Anna never gave up on her. "You know... I'm right out here for you. Just let me in, Elsa."

"Go away, Anna," she pleaded. Anna was just making this harder for her.

There was a short silence. "Okay, Elsa. Okay, bye."

Elsa covered her face with her hands. She knew she was hurting Anna, but it was better than physically harming her. She should never have come out of her room in her first place. That just made Anna more hopeful, more attached.

She remembered the first time she finally came out. She had wanted to introduce Jack to Anna.

* * *

Two knocks, two rapid knocks, one knock.

That was Anna's knock. Always the same knock. Never an answer.

This time, it was different.

Two knocks, two rapid knocks, one knock.

Elsa's head snapped up. This was it. She was going to open her door.

Jack had coaxed her into it, saying that since he had to make everyone happy, her sister was included. He had been training her inside her room, helping her control her powers, and it was working, albeit very, _very_ slowly. Jack had told her that doing it outdoors would help her improve faster, and that had also been another reason for her to go out.

Elsa hastily put her gloves on and nodded to Jack, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Hey, Elsa. Do you wanna build a snowman?" she asked. It wasn't even snowing. But it was just her way of greeting Elsa. She heard Anna chuckle.

"That's ridiculous, I know. It's summer. I was wondering if you wanted to do something? I don't know."

Elsa got off her bed and walked towards the door. Listened for more.

"I just… I miss you, Elsa. I have no one to talk to around here. Mom and Dad are gone, and I-" Her voice broke. "Please, Elsa. You're all I have left."

Elsa took deep breaths. Laid her gloved hand on the handle. Pushed it down.

"It's going to be fine, Elsa. Remember all our lessons? You're getting the hang of it," Jack whispered from behind her.

Elsa smiled gratefully and swallowed. She pulled the door open.

A slice of light spilled into her cold, dark room. She blinked, adjusting her eyes to the brightness.

She saw Anna.

And gasped.

"Anna?"

Anna's bowed head snapped up at her voice. Her eyes wide in disbelief.

"El- Elsa?"

A smile broke on Elsa's face. Anna was much older than she remembered. Her chubby cheeks had thinned out. There were freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her red hair was long and braided into two. Her blue-green eyes were still as big as ever, but they were considerably less bright than they had been. Elsa didn't have to wonder why.

"_Elsa!_" Anna shrieked, launching herself to Elsa.

Elsa felt suffocated by Anna's hug, but she welcomed it. It was odd and exhilarating at the same time, to feel the warmth of human touch. She gingerly placed her hands on Anna's back, testing that her gloves wouldn't betray her. Nothing happened, and she tightened her hold on Anna.

"I'm so glad you're back," Anna whispered. She pulled away, looking at her with shining eyes.

"Me too."

* * *

"Hey," Jack's clear voice came.

Elsa looked up and saw Jack perched on her windowsill. He was a dark silhouette against the pale glow of the moon. His hair was the only thing visible, startlingly bright in the night. The moonlight just touched him on the edges, making him seem ethereal and... beautiful.

_Wait, what?_

She looked down and sighed tiredly. "Please leave me alone."

"Never."

He hopped off the window and walked towards her.

"You promised not to enter my room without permission. What happened to that?" She didn't even try to sound angry. She was just tired.

He sat down right next to her, mimicking her position.

Elsa looked to her left, meeting his eyes. The eyes that were just like hers. Unnaturally bright blue, like ice when light reflects off of it.

She'd been staring for too long, and she knew it. But then Jack reached up and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, leaving spots of warmth where his fingers brushed her skin.

She leaned in, reaching her hand up to rest it on his arm and-

Elsa froze. Her hand was less than an inch away from Jack. She jerked back was immediately on her feet.

Her eyes were still on Jack. A flash of surprise and something resembling hurt passed across his face.

Jack stood up, eyeing her cautiously. "What's wrong?"

"I-" she stuttered, looking down at her hands. "I almost touched you," she finally said.

"So what?"

Elsa's head snapped up. "'_So what_?'"

She marched forward towards him, causing him to back up. "If I had _touched_ you, I probably would've frozen you. You would've turned into an _ice sculpture,_" she said, her voice shaking. She almost touched Jack. She almost froze Jack. She almost lost Jack.

She took a shaky breath. He had to go away. No, she had to go away. She had to leave. She had to leave if she wanted to keep all of them safe.

Elsa stumbled back, balancing herself by pressing back on the walls. She withdrew her hands hastily as she felt ice spread beneath her fingers. But it was too late.

The walls began glazing over with ice. Even as her hands lifted off, the ice kept spreading. It reached the ceiling and grew down in stalagmites.

She looked down at her hands in horror.

"Elsa-"

"Stay _away_, Jack!" she yelled, looking to him. "It's never been this bad," she added in a murmur.

Snow began to rise and swirl around her. She was the epicentre of this snowstorm. She was always the epicentre of disasters.

Jack took a step towards her.

"Stop!"

"Are you afraid, Elsa?"

"Of course I am!" she bellowed.

"Then don't be! If you're scared of your powers, how are you supposed to control it?" he screamed over the noise.

"I- I can't, Jack. _I can't_," she sobbed.

Everything was just a noise of white around her; specks of snow in chaotic movement forming one big heavy swirl. She closed her eyes, clutched her head, and willed her mind to make the storm stop. _Stop it, just _please_, stop it._

The ground began shaking. Elsa snapped her eyes open. She could just about see Jack's cobalt blue hoodie behind the rush of snow.

She heard a crack. Despite the whoosh of the storm, she heard it, loud and clear.

_Crack_.

Elsa looked up. The stalagmites. The shaking ground.

She looked back down. Jack was taking slow steps towards her. He was holding his staff up, forming an ice barrier all around him.

_Crack_.

Of course he didn't hear it. He was in his own bubble, trying to keep the snow out. _Her_ snow.

_Crack_.

The stalagmite was swaying precariously now. Jack ploughed on obliviously.

_Crack_.

The next few seconds was like a spool of yarn, so much in so little space. It unraveled as Elsa ran forward, everything else forgotten.

She felt all the tension release as the buzzing snow dropped to the ground. There was only Jack now, Jack and the stalagmite breaking off. Jack stumbled forwards without the pressure of the snowstorm pushing against him. His previously closed eyes opened in surprise. He seemed to see Elsa running, a yell stuck in her throat.

A concoction of panic and confusion and relief flashed in his eyes. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, not realizing the sharp tip of the ice nearing him.

Elsa leaped forward, pushing him as hard as she could. Cold air whooshed behind her.

She fell forward, hitting the icy ground hard, just as a giant crash sounded behind her. Shards of ice flew all around her.

She saw Jack a few feet away, looking at her in horror. _It's alright now_, she wanted to say.

But a shadow loomed from above.

An intense flash of bruising pain.

Nothing.

* * *

Jack fell on his backside, sending shards of pain up his spine. What was Elsa thinking?

He looked up and watched in horror as a giant stalagmite hit the ground with an echoing crash. It fell right behind Elsa as she hit the ground with a painful bang. The sharpest point of the ice broke off into tiny harmless pieces, but most of it stayed intact as it fell forward.

Towards Elsa.

He reached for his fallen staff and thrust it forward, shooting snow to push the falling iceberg away. But he knew it was futile.

It fell on Elsa with a muffled thump and froze in place for a fraction of a moment, before rolling off to the side. His shot of snow whizzed past it.

Jack felt his legs moving, running towards her. He heard his own voice scream her name from a distance. It sounded ragged.

Then he was kneeling by motionless body. He felt like he was trapped in a daze. His actions felt distant, separate from himself. He was still processing it all, yet his body was moving almost mechanically.

She was lying on her stomach, her cheek pressed to the ground. A deep red color slowly peeked out from under her head.

That snapped Jack out of his confusion.

"Elsa?"

Nothing.

"No," he muttered. "No, no, no, no, no."

Jack picked up her limp body and held her to him. He cradled her head in the crook of his arm.

_Oh God, her _head_._

Her forehead was smeared with thick red blood, the only splash of color on her drained face.

She wasn't breathing, that much was clear to Jack. He looked around for something, anything.

He felt his throat close up, his vision blurring with tears. He blinked the tears away hastily.

"Elsa," he whispered. "Elsa, please. Please don't leave me."

It was stupid, he knew, but he felt so helpless. His chest ached with all the things he never said. The _one_ thing he never said.

"I love you," he whispered, burying his face in the crook of her neck. It was useless. She would never know, and he would never know her answer.

A pale, ghostly glow fell on her through the window. Jack looked up. A full corn moon floated in empty black sky. A thought came to him.

"Bring her back," he said softly, his voice unable to produce more.

Nothing happened.

Jack swallowed. "Please, bring her back."

More silence.

"BRING HER BACK!" he yelled, his voice raw and much too loud in the empty room.

"_Bring her back_," he sobbed. "She saved me!" he said, his voice rising in desperation. "She sacrificed herself, isn't that enough?"

Nothing.

"Why was I brought back, then? Isn't it because I sacrificed myself for my sister?" He paused. "Well, she locked herself in her room for _years_ to protect her sister _and_ everyone else, and she died protecting _me_. What more do you want?!"

He waited for something to happen. He waited for what seemed like an eternity. But he stayed in his spot staring up at the moon, with Elsa's lifeless body in his arms.

"Please. _Bring her back_."

As the words left his lips, the pale yellow moonlight intensified into a haunting white light. It filled the room, making it bright as daylight. Jack felt Elsa's weight lift off of him and looked down to find her floating upwards.

He scrambled to his feet, not taking his eyes off of her. She seemed to be glowing, with the moonlight flooding her.

Her eyes snapped open.

* * *

The moon.

That was the first thing she saw. Impossibly big and impossibly bright, it seemed to drown out the darkness of the night sky. It soothed her and gave her comfort. _Everything will be fine,_ she thought.

Her chest heaved once with air. Then, as if a latch had been opened, she felt a sudden desperate need for it, like she had been deprived of air. Elsa took deep, gasping gulps of the cold air. She tried to sit up, but soon realized that she was floating in air.

Wait, _floating_?

Elsa yelped in surprise and thrashed about, looking for something to hold her.

"Elsa! Calm down, it's all okay," she heard a voice say.

Elsa instinctively trusted it and stopped moving. As soon as she did, her body was tilted until her feet were pointed towards the ground. She felt herself being lowered slowly, until her feet finally felt solid ground.

Elsa stumbled as her whole body weight was suddenly thrust upon her once more. She breathed out a sigh of relief as footsteps padded heavily towards her.

She whirled around just in time to see a blur of blue and white before she was enveloped in a hug. Elsa stiffened.

The person pulled away. It was a boy, with pale skin and messy snow-white hair. His eyes were a bright turquoise color. He seemed elated to see her, and Elsa couldn't help feeling a little guilty for not recognizing him.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"I- I don't know. I mean, who are you?"

She saw a brief flash of pain that contorted his features, but he soon plastered on a smile. "Oh. I'm Jack," he said, with thinly veiled hurt. "Jack Frost."

He held out a hand. Elsa took it cautiously, studying his features.

"Are you checking me out?" he asked, obviously amused.

"N-No!" Elsa sputtered out.

He wiggled his eyebrows, but it seemed half-hearted. "_Really_?"

"Are you _flirting _with me?" she asked incredulously. Oddly, it felt like a sort of de ja vu.

He paused, swallowing and forcing a smile. "Maybe."

Elsa sucked in a deep breath.

She remembered. She remembered everything.

Her ice powers. Playing with Anna. Hitting Anna's head by accident using her powers. Locking herself in her room. Anna's relentless begging to build a snowman. Jack suddenly appearing in her room one night. Their parents dying at sea. Anna crying in front of her door. Jack teaching Elsa how to control her powers.

"Jack," she breathed out. "Jack!"

She grabbed hold of him and hugged him tightly.

"Elsa," she heard him say. "You're okay now. You're okay."

She pulled away. "Wh- what happened?"

Jack's face fell. "You died, Elsa. You _died_."

"How-"

"There was a giant piece of ice falling and you… you sacrificed yourself to save me."

It was coming back to her now. The snowstorm she created, the falling stalagmite. Pushing Jack to safety, a loud crash.

"Oh. Then how did I-"

"The Man in the Moon."

"What?" she asked.

Jack ran a hand through his hair. "The Man in the Moon turned me into a spirit after I died sacrificing myself for my sister. And I… kinda begged him to do the same to you." He paused, looking down sheepishly. "I realize now that it's completely selfish, and you might not even _want_ to be a spirit, and I'm so _so _sorry-"

"Sorry?" Elsa cut him off. "You don't have to be sorry, Jack. I'm not dead because of you."

"Same here. I mean, I'm not dead because _you._ But now you're going to live forever, and people who don't believe in you won't see you. I'm so sorry, Elsa. I didn't think it through."

"Stop apologizing, Jack. It's fine," she said. "I'm fine. At least I'm not dead. And besides, being a spirit isn't _that_ bad, right?"

Jack chuckled. "No. It's pretty fun, actually."

"Then it's all good," she said, pulling him back into a hug.

"I thought I lost you," Jack whispered. "You scared the hell out of me."

They stayed like that in comfortable silence, until Jack spoke up.

"I love you."

Elsa froze, and Jack jumped away. He looked mortified.

"I- I'm so sorry, I don't know why I said that. I mean, I know, but I didn't- I shouldn't-"

"I love you, too," Elsa said simply, cutting him off. She already felt her cheeks warming.

Jack stared at her, opened his mouth to say something, and closed it again. "I-"

Elsa rolled her eyes and grabbed Jack's arms, pulling him towards her. She felt reckless now, reckless and brave and overjoyed.

He looked like he was still processing what she just said, but Elsa tiptoed and pressed her lips to his. She felt his surprise as he was unresponsive for a moment, but he seemed to register what was happening and kissed her back.

Elsa reached up and hooked her arms around his neck as his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him. They crushed whatever space was left between them, holding on to each other tightly.

"Is everything- ooooookay..."

They sprang apart, looking to the open door. Anna stood there, grinning at the two of them.

"_Finally._ It's about time you two got together," she said, marching towards them.

Elsa felt her face flare up. "Anna!"

"Yes, Elsa?" she replied, smiling innocently. "Oh right! I interrupted you guys. Sorry about that. I was just wondering what all the noise was about. I guess you two have been busy," she said with a wink.

Elsa choked as Jack's eyes widened.

"Don't worry," Anna said, backing out of the room, "I won't disturb you any further."

She skipped out, and Elsa could hear her laughter echoing in the hallways. She was paralyzed in her spot, too mortified to even look at Jack.

"Do you wanna… build a snowman?" Jack asked.

Elsa smiled. "Sounds good to me."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you guys liked this! Please review or favorite! Thank you guys! :)**


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